Just another day at the office! Newcastle's hat-trick hero Ba taking one game at a time

Newcastlestriker Demba Ba is not setting himself any targets after launching his career on Tyneside in style with a match-winning hat-trick.

The 26-year-old Senegal international, who scored seven goals in 12 Barclays Premier League appearances for West Ham last season, may not have been the marquee signing the fans hoped clamoured for, ultimately in vain, during the summer transfer window.

However, after a slow start by the standards he had set himself at Upton Park, Ba belatedly announced his arrival with a treble in yesterday's 3-1 home victory over Blackburn which extended the Magpies' unbeaten start to the campaign to eight games in all competitions.

Three and easy: Ba bagged all of Newcastle's goals against Rovers

That took him level with leading scorer Leon Best, but the former Hoffenheim frontman insisted he has not set himself a mark to reach before the end of the campaign.

Ba said: 'I just want to have good performances and score goals. That's what makes me happy. I have a competition against myself.

'It's been a good day after a lot of work and a lot of bad performances and now today, the work just paid off for me.

'I was not fit at the beginning of the season and now after six games, I am starting to get my sharpness back, and I am just going to keep on working to have it 100 per cent for the next weeks.

'You feel happy. I have scored my first goal here this season and I just hope it is going to keep on going.'

Manager Alan Pardew never doubted Ba's ability in front of goal, but was convinced that the effects of the player's fasting during Ramadan had left him fighting for full fitness.

Net result: Ba nods the Geordies' second goal of the afternoon home

However, Ba revealed Pardew had repeatedly assured him that he would get his opportunity when he was ready.

He said: 'He always told me that when I was fit, I would get my chance and it was up to me to take it or leave it.'

Ba had already drilled a long-range shot over Paul Robinson's crossbar when he fired Newcastle ahead with 27 minutes gone.

In perhaps the best of his three finishes, he controlled Best's driven cross before turning defender Scott Dann and thumping a right-footed shot into the back of the net.

Ba said: 'To tell you the truth, the ball was for Leon. I just wanted to give it back to Leon because he was in a good position as well.

'I haven't seen the pictures yet, but I don't think anybody touched it and the ball went into the goal, so I am very happy with that."

He doubled his tally within three minutes with a simple close-range header after Steven Taylor had helped Danny Simpson's cross back across the penalty area, and completed his hat-trick nine minutes after the restart.

Just the job: The investment in Ba is paying off for Pardew

Cheick Tiote's deep cross allowed Ba to climb at the far post and loop a header over Robinson with Best failing to get a decisive touch as he collided with Dann and Robinson on the line, although not illegally in the view of referee Martin Atkinson.

Rovers, however, took a different view and midfielder Martin Olsson was booked for his protests, a caution which proved costly 20 minutes from time when he was yellow-carded for a second time for a cynical trip on Best.

The visitors had given themselves hope eight minutes before half-time when Junior Hoilett had blasted home after Mauro Formica and Olsson had capitalised on an error by Ryan Taylor, but Olsson failed to make the most of two second-half Michel Salgado crosses as their hopes were extinguished.

Victory maintained Newcastle's fourth place in the table just a point adrift of Chelsea in third, but sent Blackburn back into the bottom three and dissipated the optimism fostered by last weekend's victory over Arsenal.

Manager Steve Kean, who cited the controversy over Ba's third goal as the turning point in the game, was nevertheless defiant.

He said: 'It's a disappointing result because we felt positive, we felt we could come here today and getting something.

'The way we came back into the game and the way we started the second half, we were positive.

'That checks the momentum we have built up from beating Arsenal and then getting through to the next round of the Carling Cup, but we will get back on the training ground.

'We will see how the injuries are because near the end of the game, [Gael] Givet had to stay on injured, Salgado had to stay on injured and we ended up with young Jason Lowe having to play at left-back, so it was tough near the end.'